"So it's you at last," Castlebottom puffed. "Such delays! The crisis ... etheroel."
Bill sniffed, then jockeyed his eyes around, searching for the other voice. It was then that he caught his breath....
Kitty Carlton was the woman of the moment, the toast of three worlds—Mars, Venus and Earth. The Planetoids didn't count for they were just colonies. Kitty was the very capable chief of the giant Cosmetics Monopoly. But she wasn't toasted for that. It was her very trim, blonde, dimpled loveliness that did the trick. Dressed in leatherine white from head to foot, she resembled a snow queen.
"Petrie!" Castlebottom's strained voice jarred Bill back into the present. "Pay attention, please! That's the trouble with you freebooters. Minds always wander."
"Do you blame me?" Bill murmured.
"The matter in hand," Castlebottom said, frowning and paying no attention to the girl. "You know there's an etheroel crisis? We've tapped the last fuel sands on Venus. Our supply will be gone within a month. You know what that means?"
"Where do I fit in?" Bill asked.
"This, precisely," said Castlebottom. "You leave for Planetoid Uva immediately. We can't spare anyone else. Here are the equals to be filled in by the Uvans. We've outlined the problem. We need a synthetic etheroel. The Uvans will give you the answer. Guard it with your life. Now you'll need credentials ... wait...."
Castlebottom was up from his desk. He disappeared into a side office.
"Freebooter, eh?" It was Kitty Carlton. She had crossed the room and now sat on the edge of Castlebottom's desk, looking at Bill with frank, deep-blue eyes. "Very interesting. You're the first one I've ever seen this close. You don't look very different."